Dr Jim Littlemore

Jim is a Senior Lecturer in Ecology, Conservation and Sustainability, an MSc Course Director and Employability Lead. He is an experienced professional ecologist with a diverse background in environmental consultancy, land-based research and University level teaching. He is a Chartered Ecologist, full member of the Chartered Institute of Ecology & Environmental Management (CIEEM), and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

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Background

Jim is a licensed Chartered Ecologist with a practical background in countryside management and agriculture. He obtained a PhD from the University of Warwick before forging a duality in his career that was divided equally between environmental consultancy and Higher Education teaching and research in the land-based sector. He has over 25 years lecturing and consultancy experience and continues to operate as an external examiner in other Universities. He is the Course Director for two MSc programmes, an Employability Lead for the School and a member of the Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environment.

Prior to joining the School of Life Sciences in 2022, Jim worked as a Principal Ecologist and Environment Manager for Kier Highways, Amey Consulting and SYSTRA focussing on delivering environmental impact assessments, particularly for highways and rail infrastructure developments.

Research interests

• Biodiversity Assessment for Conservation
• Sustainable Land Management
• Recreation Ecology
• Enhancing Graduate employability skills

Areas of expertise

• Ecological Impact Assessments
• Environmental Sustainability and Design
• Habitat Management and Conservation
• Biodiversity Assessment
• Recreation Ecology

Areas of research supervision

Jim is currently co-supervising a PhD on chalk stream restoration with Hobson’s Conduit Trust and is the first supervisor for another on ancient woodland restoration with the Wilderness Foundation UK.

Jim has supervised eight successful PhD completions to date on a diverse range of disciplines including the behavioural ecology and habitat preferences of harvest mice upon reintroduction to the wild; habitat and landscape scale effects on macro-moth biodiversity in intensive farmland; social bonds in dairy cows; welfare of fostering methods in sheep; equine biomechanics and hydrotherapy; optimising drilling methods in conservation tillage systems for wheat and oil seed rape production; managing recreation in lowland farmed landscapes for biodiversity and the use of novel green manures to control disease in trees. He has been a PhD examiner on four occasions, including internationally.

Teaching

Courses: BSc (Hons) Ecology & Conservation, BSc (Hons) Zoology, BSc (Hons) Animal Behaviour; MSc Applied Wildlife Conservation, MSc Animal Behaviour: Applications for Conservation.

Module Leader: Introduction to Ecology & Conservation (level 4), Sustainable Land Management (level 6 & 7), Professional Field Skills (level 6).

Qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Ecology (Royal Holloway, University of London)
• PhD Woodland Ecology (University of Warwick)
• PGCE (University of Greenwich)

Memberships, editorial boards

• Chartered Ecologist (CEcol), ,ember of CIEEM, former CPD tutor and panel member of the Academia Special Interest Group
• Editorial board member for the Arboricultural Journal, Journal of Ecology & Conservation, and CIEEM In Practice..
• Editorial journal reviewer for Restoration Ecology; Forestry; Sustainability; Journal of Environmental Management and Animal Biotelemetry.
• Volunteer woodland warden for Bush Walk & Withmale Park Woods SSSI, Northants.
• Chair of ARU Biodiversity Steering Group.

Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange

HEIF, Sustainable Futures, QR Commercial Engagement Funding, Innovation Voucher KTP grants for AI/machine learning for autonomous biodiversity assessment (£25k). Recent match funded PhD awards with collaborators (£80k).

Greater Cambridge Chalk Stream Project with collaborators (£119k).

National Highways Environment Designated Funding for ‘KTP self-cleaning ditches project’ with the University of Greenwich.

Grant funding secured from the Elizabeth Creak Trust (£60k) for ‘farming the solar farm - development of an agri-business diversification toolkit for UK farmers’ with the University of Northampton.

Grant funding for a KTP project on ‘optimising drilling methods in conservation tillage systems for wheat and oil seed rape production’ - Frontier Agronomy (£70k) with Cranfield University.

Misc. small ecological grants from Lightsource BP, the Peoples Trust for Endangered Species, the Forestry Commission and Local Authorities.

Innovation in Ecological Education Grant awarded by British Ecological Society.

Six PhD student bursaries from the Thomas Harrison Trust, University of Northampton.

Selected recent publications

Duarte-Rosa, M., Jones, H., Tang, C.M. & Littlemore, J. (2026) Eurasian Badger Re-Identification Using AI: new dataset and fine-tuned foundation model. Computing Conference Proceedings, July, London.

Duarte-Rosa, M., Baker, M., Tang, C.M. & Littlemore, J. (2025) GCN-ID: A Benchmark Dataset for Great Crested Newt Re-identification Using AI Foundation Models. Conference Proceedings of BMVC Machine Vision for Climate Change.

Littlemore, J., Kelly, T. & Hannah-Lyons, N. (2017) Droning on about UAV's for ecological surveying. Ranger 117.

Rockell, G., Littlemore, J. & Scrimgeour, J. (2016) Habitat preferences of long tailed bats (Chalinolobus tuberculatus) along riparian corridors of the forested Pikiariki Ecological Area, Pureora Forest Park. DOC Research & Development Series, New Zealand.

Coulthard, E., McCollin, D.M. & Littlemore, J. (2016) The use of hedgerows as flight paths by moths in intensive farmland landscapes. Journal of Insect Conservation, 1-6.

Littlemore, J. (2016) Out of the classroom and into the woods. Quarterly Journal of Forestry 110, (1), 56- 59.

Littlemore, J., Willmer, S. & Small, D. (2014) Gamebird feeding hoppers provide winter food for non-target wildlife species in the East Midlands, England. Journal of Practical Ecology and Conservation 10.

Littlemore, J. & Howard-Williams, E. (2014) Harvest mouse hunt. Biodiversity News Issue 66, Autumn. Defra.

Exelby, E., Littlemore, J. & Scrimgeour, J. (2013) The forest dwelling walking bat. Journal of Practical Ecology and Conservation 9 (1), 32-37.

Littlemore, J. & Storey, S. (2013) Current Status of a Woodland Invader – the Edible Dormouse (Glis glis) in the Chilterns, central England. Journal of Practical Ecology and Conservation 9 (1), 11-18.

Howard-Williams, E., Wallis, D. & Littlemore, J. (2013) Design of an autonomous wireless RFID system for small mammal tracking, and methods of attracting species to the antenna. In: Proceedings of Mammal Society Annual Student Conference, University of Stafford.

Littlemore, J. & Barker, S. (2005) Managing public access and recreation for wildlife in woodlands – ecological principles and guidelines for best practice. Quarterly Journal of Forestry 99(4):271-85.

Littlemore, J. & Barker, S. (2001) The ecological response of forest ground flora and soils to experimental trampling in British urban woodlands. Urban Ecosystems 5(4):257-276.

Littlemore, J. (2001) Managing recreation and conservation in Britain’s urban woodlands – a management guide. Quarterly Journal of Forestry, 95, No. 2, 129 – 136.

Recent presentations and conferences

• Littlemore, J., Duarte-Rosa, M., & Tang, C.M (2025) Autonomous approaches for biodiversity assessment using machine learning: innovations for identifying individual animals. CIEEM Summer Conference - Embracing the AI Revolution in Ecology & Environmental Management.
• Carter, T. & Littlemore, J. (2025) The Value of Residential Field Courses and Experiential Authentic Assessment in the Teaching of Professional Field Ecology Skills. CIHE Pedagogic Research Conference.
• Nunes-Spinosa, P., Tang, C-M, Ings, T., Frith. R., Osman & Littlemore, J. (2024) Development of novel ecological monitoring methods for the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius). Conference Presentation]. Mammal Society 69th Conference, University of Cambridge.
• Howard-Williams, E., McCollin, D., McCormick, W. & Littlemore, J. (2021) The Use of a Conservation Detection Dog for Establishing Micromys minutus (harvest mouse) Presence. [Conference Presentation]. Mammal Society 66th Spring Conference, University of Cambridge.
• Littlemore, J., Willshaw, W, Wilson, G. & Carline, R. (2021) 'Raft but not Least' – an Innovative Ecological Surveying Method for Detecting Water Voles. [Poster]. Mammal Society 66th Spring Conference, University of Cambridge.
• Littlemore, J., Ward, S. & Brewin, L. (2020) Ecological Mitigation Approaches in Infrastructure Development: embracing a Biophilic Environmental Engineering Philosophy. [ePoster & Lightning Talk]. British Ecological Society Winter Meeting, 14-18 December.
• Littlemore, J., Wilshaw, W. & Brewin, L. (2018) Wildlife on the verge: evaluating the East Midlands strategic road network for biodiversity. [Poster]. British Ecological Society Winter Meeting, Birmingham.

Media experience

Extensive commercial media experience in environmental consultancy and research roles including stakeholder liaison, radio/TV interviews and public information events.